Like many of you, I instantly lusted after the Diamondback 380 due to its' Glock-iness and ease of concealment. I purchased the Academy Sports version (no 3-dot sights, just a very tiny rear notch and front muzzle bump).
Sure, I read about initial reliability issues, but since this was purchased about 4 months ago, I was certain all the bugs had been worked out, so I loaded her up with hollowpoints and grabbed a pocket holster from Galco and actually carried it on several occasions. Thanksgiving day I finally had an opportunity to shoot her....
Racked the slide, took aim at a B-27 target from about 20 feet and a hole appeared in the center of the head. Just where I was aiming! HAH! Who said the DB couldn't feed hollow points?!!!
THen I looked at the ejection port and the spent casing was stovepiped in the ejection port, also blocking the next round from chambering. So I removed the mag,racked the slide to eject the spent casing and the live round that was stuck, re-inserted the magazine, racked the slide....and BANG....another hole right in the center of the head! And another stovepiped casing. Repeat drill, re-insert magazine, BANG! A 3rd hole in the head of the target. And a third spent casing stovepiped in the ejection port. This continued 4 more times, and I decided to switch the rounds to ball ammo.
First round did the same stovepiping. Then it went Bang 3 times in a row, perfectly! Then it stovepiped again. THen it went BANG another 3 times with a reloaded magazine of ball, then it stovepiped. THis continued for about 20 more rounds until I was fed up.
I have contacted Diamondback Firearms to see what they suggest could be the issue. If it was the feedramp, it would seem that racking the slide to chamber a round would be problematic. It racks and chambers just fine, even with hollow points. The issue is either the magazine angle, or a combination of the feedramp and Magazine feed angle, I would think.
RIght now, I don't trust the DB380 for anything more than a paperweight. Even tho it looks like a Glock, trust me.... it's not a Glock. My G26 has NEVER failed to feed or eject, regardless of what ammo I feed it. FOr those considering a DB380, I suggest a waiting period. Or know a great gunsmith that can tune it properly. I really want to like this little firearm....it is simple and clean, well-designed, easy to carry...but out of the box it is not a firearm to be carried or to stake your life on. Not sure if I ever will, unless I can get it to run at least 200 consecutive rounds with no issues. And of course I would clean it after every 50 just to keep things fair.
Next posting will include advice/opinion from Diamondback's Service Center.
Sure, I read about initial reliability issues, but since this was purchased about 4 months ago, I was certain all the bugs had been worked out, so I loaded her up with hollowpoints and grabbed a pocket holster from Galco and actually carried it on several occasions. Thanksgiving day I finally had an opportunity to shoot her....
Racked the slide, took aim at a B-27 target from about 20 feet and a hole appeared in the center of the head. Just where I was aiming! HAH! Who said the DB couldn't feed hollow points?!!!
THen I looked at the ejection port and the spent casing was stovepiped in the ejection port, also blocking the next round from chambering. So I removed the mag,racked the slide to eject the spent casing and the live round that was stuck, re-inserted the magazine, racked the slide....and BANG....another hole right in the center of the head! And another stovepiped casing. Repeat drill, re-insert magazine, BANG! A 3rd hole in the head of the target. And a third spent casing stovepiped in the ejection port. This continued 4 more times, and I decided to switch the rounds to ball ammo.
First round did the same stovepiping. Then it went Bang 3 times in a row, perfectly! Then it stovepiped again. THen it went BANG another 3 times with a reloaded magazine of ball, then it stovepiped. THis continued for about 20 more rounds until I was fed up.
I have contacted Diamondback Firearms to see what they suggest could be the issue. If it was the feedramp, it would seem that racking the slide to chamber a round would be problematic. It racks and chambers just fine, even with hollow points. The issue is either the magazine angle, or a combination of the feedramp and Magazine feed angle, I would think.
RIght now, I don't trust the DB380 for anything more than a paperweight. Even tho it looks like a Glock, trust me.... it's not a Glock. My G26 has NEVER failed to feed or eject, regardless of what ammo I feed it. FOr those considering a DB380, I suggest a waiting period. Or know a great gunsmith that can tune it properly. I really want to like this little firearm....it is simple and clean, well-designed, easy to carry...but out of the box it is not a firearm to be carried or to stake your life on. Not sure if I ever will, unless I can get it to run at least 200 consecutive rounds with no issues. And of course I would clean it after every 50 just to keep things fair.
Next posting will include advice/opinion from Diamondback's Service Center.